Merci: I'm sure you were wondering where we were yesterday and why the cats wrote the first post of the year. We drew straws.
Buddy: No, we didn't. We drew treats and the one who drew the chicken one would win for his team - Team Dogs or Team Cats. But when it came Marcus's turn he ate the remainder of the treats, so we dogs lost by treat default.
Merci: I was trying to be polite and keep us all from being embarrassed.
Marcus: You just had to tell that story, didn't you! You left out the part that I was late to the meeting and I missed the instructions. I thought you were all just being generous when you passed the covered bowl to me.
Merci: We haven't been doing much of this lately. Walking, I mean, not standing around posing for dumb pictures of Marcus sleeping upright. I wonder how he does that?
Buddy: The new year came in with a lot of rain, so we were doing a lot of this.
Marcus: And this. See, I really do like my crate even when Jan is home and the door is open.
Buddy: We want to start the new year by giving you as big a laugh as the cats did yesterday.
Merci: So we're posting this America's Funniest Video of Dogs Discovering Snow.
Marcus: If this doesn't make you laugh, you might want to check your pulse to be sure you're still with us cause we were all rolling on the floor.
Cyndi: Hi, there. Haven't seen you in ages. At least since last year.
Micah: Cyndi, last year was only 3 days ago.
Cyndi: It still applies. I want to share one of my new favorite perches. I thought the top perch of the cat tower was high but one day I discovered I could push aside the curtain between the living room and the back porch and climb onto the top of our blankets and supplies storage bins.
From here I could jump across to the top of the bathroom door and onto an even higher shelf behind the door. Until Jan caught me and blocked the route.
Micah: Percy is the door sitter in our house. Jan was surprised a 13 year-old cat would take it up, but Cyndi doesn't let her age get in the way of her renewed drive to explore
Cyndi: I really like it up here. It's like sitting on top of a mountain with peace and quiet and a great view.
Micah: Yes, if you like viewing the litter pans.
Cyndi: Sometimes Micah joins me but usually we take turns.
Micah: Yes. Here Cyndi is on top of the storage bins and I am on top of the cat tower.
Cyndi: Yep, it was just the two of us until we were ready to post this picture and we realized Percy is in it too. Can you find Percy? You can click on the pic to enlarge it. We'll tell you where he is at the very end of this post, in case you can't find him.
Micah: We want to begin 2017 with some laughter, so here is a cats will be cats video.
Percy: We have solved the question of why, in her old age, Merci is has taken up digging all the stuffing out of all our beds.
Buddy: This is a picture of Merci in her younger days. She's so pretty and dainty. Many people have made a comment over the years about the fact she's a little long for a dog her size. Not overly long but a little.
Percy: We have long wondered if she doesn't have a little dachshund in her family tree.
Buddy: We found this short video and sent it to Frankie and Ernie. Then we got to thinking. Merci digs with as much enthusiasm as these doxies do. She just mainly does it to bedding now.
Percy: As humans age, they forget what they had for breakfast but they remember where they were and what they were doing when they were three minutes old.
Buddy: Nobody remembers anything from when he was three minutes old! But I can guess. Crying! The doctor has just slapped him on the bottom. Try three years old.
Percy: Three years, three decades ... what's the difference? The human can remember things from childhood, perhaps for the first time.
Buddy: Dogs can grow senile as they age too. What if Merci has reverted to puppyhood and suddenly remembered her great-great-great grandfather was a red doxie who loved to dig in the dirt and she is trying to follow in his pawprints? She sure has a good-sized cave dug beside the back steps.
Percy: And she has dug the stuffing out of all the dog beds. There must be a stuffing factory underneath the floor, as all the beds are flat but the stuffing keeps coming and coming.
Micah: I've been lying here in my bed listening to this conversation and I can't figure out if you two are serious. If you are, there are probably doxies in white coats carrying a straightjacket coming for you.
Buddy: If they are, we'll send them to Frankie and Ernie's. Those guys have a large fenced yard. Our back pen is a little small for a community dig.
Micah: Think about it, Buddy. Doxies in white coats would not be here to dig up the yard!
Merci: Here is our handsome Sam enjoying the sunshine.
Cyndi: We started a Sunday Selfie (blog hop) post a while back but then Sam got sick and we forgot about it.
Merci: It was a nice surprise to find this draft. We don't post on the weekend any more so we decided to have a Tuesday Sunday Selfie day in memory of Sam.
Cyndi: Any day is a good day to remember those we love, so let's celebrate his humor with a funny video.
Merci: We love to watch baby elephants. They make us smile. And often laugh.
Cyndi: This little one proves that a young elephant can be just as stubborn as a human youngster.
Merci: Fortunately, he doesn't throw a temper tantrum but he sure doesn't want to get out of the water.
Cyndi: Notice how determined he is, yet how gentle his mom is with him.
Rusty: They're all watching Jan tearing the house apart.
Taylor: But where will we live if she tears the house up?
Rusty: It's an expression. It means she makes an unbelievable mess through the whole house as she digs and discards and weeds out things she doesn't use.
Taylor: Digs and weeds? Is she planting grass in here too?
Rusty: No. Look, remember Sunday she decided to get out her summer clothes and put away her winter ones?
Taylor: Yes, she moved things off the cedar chest on Sunday and hasn't even opened it yet to begin the transfer. The house is in chaos.
Rusty: That's how Jan digs and weeds her way through what should be a simple project. Move A, wash B, bag C to give away, empty box and toss in trash, and -
Taylor: Trash an empty box? We're cats. Isn't there a law against trashing boxes?
Rusty: Yes, the EBB - I'm sorry, the Empty Box Bureau could fine her if we file a complaint, but we never do because if Jan pays the fine, she can't afford to feed us. So we suffer in silence with a full tummy.
Taylor: Oh, I didn't realize I'm suffering.
Rusty: Don't worry. You'll get used to it. Meanwhile, I'd advise you to follow my lead and avoid Jan until her she collapses from this chaotic streak.
Taylor: Thanks, Rusty. I guess I'll pass some time watching funny videos.
Rusty: I have just the one for you. Let's watch this doxie try to take a carrot through a doggy door.
SAM: Buddy's birthday was Friday and we had a quiet celebration. Well, it was quiet until Marcus started singing Happy Birthday in that high tenor that sounds more like a soprano yelp he has.
BUDDY: Saturday morning I got this lovely birthday card from WeBeesSiameezers. Thanks, Pipo and Minko. And thanks to all who took the time to leave a comment or send an email.
RUSTY: Buddy had a good birthday. Jan had a stressful day. It was one of those anything that can go wrong did days. For example ...
MERCI: So he couldn't steal any more bowls of cat food, Jan blocked Marcus's access to the food bowl with a dishpan blockade on the dryer and a small cooler on the stool. Because of that blockade, Micah and Percy accidentally bumped into one another and got into a knock-down drag-out, things flying, kitchen heater pilot light snuffing battle.
CYNDI: Late that afternoon Jan heard strange sounds coming from the kitchen. Marcus came to sit beside her. He was licking his mouth. Jan checked the cat food bowl. Every crumb was gone and the bowl was damp.
PERCY: Jan put Marcus in a time out in his crate. She still can't figure out how he accessed the food blockaded into a corner (against a wall) on the dryer.
MICAH: After a while she put the dogs outside. Marcus came inside trying to get Merci or Sam to wrestle, which he isn't supposed to do in the house. Not that he pays attention.
RUSTY: Jan yelled, "Marcus, do you want to go back in your crate?" Marcus stopped dead. He looked at her, looked at the crate, looked at Jan and walked into his crate. Wow, déjà vu. We can remember posting the same event a while back. Guess Marcus recognizes when Jan has had e-n-o-u-g-h!
MARCUS: That was not an admission of guilt or wrongdoing. I had merely decided I wanted to have dinner in my private dining car; however, Jan said she wasn't a waitress and my dinner was later served in the kitchen.
PERCY: Do you remember this photo from 2014? Marcus had jumped on the stool to get on the dryer so he could cross over to the cabinet where our cat food bowl sat.
RUSTY: Our bowl now sits in a corner on the dryer, which would be behind Marcus in the photo above.
MICAH: Jan has kept something on the stool ever since so Marcus can't reach our food again.
CYNDI: However, she is rearranging and cleaning and forgot to put anything back on the stool.
RUSTY: We have been begging for a lot of food lately. And making quite the mess of things on the dryer..
MICAH: This morning our empty bowl and everything supposed to be on the dryer were on the floor.
CYNDI: It took a while to register with Jan. (She's been a bit forgetful, remember.)
PERCY: But when the bowl was clean to the last crumb and needed to be refilled for the fourth time in just a few hours Friday, the cloud finally lifted and she remembered Marcus the leaping bulldog.
MARCUS: And now my access to the cat food is blocked with a cooler on the stool. Starvation is abuse! I can already feel my ribs. How am I going to survive without snacks?
CYNDI: Perhaps Marcus can identify with this messy French bulldog, although in all honesty, none of us ratted on Marcus.
MICAH: We're on a roll here, not accomplishing much of anything.
RUSTY: Our intention was to post today but time got away from us.
MERCI: Yes, Jan was working on our peace graphic for Wednesday.
SAM: Don't forget November 4th is the big day for peace globes.
CYNDI: Actually we keep forgetting and keep getting reminded. And then forget again. And finally Jan did something about it.
MARCUS: It must be a special day for me. Jan keeps telling me I need to learn to keep the peace instead of trumpeting it into oblivion. I don't know what that means but it sounds exciting.
BUDDY: It means you have an annoying voice and you are constantly vocal. Try talking with your mouth closed.
PERCY: Since we didn't have time to prepare anything, we'll just add a short video. You know we love baby elephant videos. This little one is having fun chasing birds. Oh, that Marcus could have such fun while being this quiet.
SAM: Oops. Jan wasn't the only one who goofed last night. We forgot to change the auto post time and we're just getting online at noon. *covers eyes with paw*
MERCI: Well, the 2015 Daylight Savings Time ended on a note reminiscent of Jan's first fall here.
CYNDI: Jan was on the ball, but all that climbing while working around the house addled her brain more than usual.
PERCY: To be sure she doesn't forget, when the time changes, she goes around the house in the early evening and resets anything that keeps time.
SAM: She reset the alarm clock in the bedroom when she moved it earlier while cleaning.
RUSTY: At dinnertime, she walked through the house, changing the time on all the clocks. And then reset her watch, as she took it off and put it away for the night.
MARCUS: She made a note to check the cameras and the cordless phone tomorrow.
MICAH: She sat down at the computer, very proud of herself. And then she remembered she had just set everything ahead one hour instead of one hour back.
BUDDY: We figure she can use a Sunday Smile so we'll share this very short, fun video with her - and with you. Look at all those adorable baby goats running and "talking" at the same time.
MICAH: We have a good laugh for you today. Two Sunday Smiles, actually.
MERCI: They aren't related but they go so well together, like two sides of a door.
RUSTY: Heehee, Merci. Two sides of a door. That's a good one because that's exactly what they are.
MARCUS: Except these are "opposite" sides of two doors. How can that be, you ask?
CYNDI: When you have cats being cats, you have to expect the unexpected. Did I say that correctly?
BUDDY: Yes, Cyndi. I have lived with you and other cats cats since I was 2 or 3 weeks old and I can speak from experience you will always do the unexpected!
PERCY: These are both very short. This is what happened after someone installed a cat door and the cat used it for the first time. Here is Part 1.
Jan: Now that you've had a couple of laughs, I want to get serious. If you own a dog, please LEASH him. If you live in this area and you don't think the leash law pertains to you, you are a pompous moron. My dogs have been the objects of more attacks than I can count and I have had more injuries than I want to remember since I adopted Merci in 2003 and three dogs attacked her two months later. A neighbor once gave me a golf club for protection from a very persistent and aggressive territorial doxie but the heft was wrong and wasn't any protection.
Last night when Marcus and I topped the parking lot hill and headed for the sidewalk, three - not one but THREE!! - dogs came racing at us, barking and growling. All I had for protection was an almost empty water pistol. Marcus and I stood still until the first one, a doxie, crossed the street and came within a foot or so of us. It turned back when I squirted it. The two across the street stopped just long enough for the biggest dog (a hound mix about Marcus's size) to tear up some turf with his back paws to mark his territory (with the scent glands on his paws), and then all three came charging across the road. If we had been on their side of the road, they would have torn into Marcus before that doxie had reached us the first time. And because of his breed, Marcus would have been blamed as the one who started it. At the last moment, the asinine S.O.B. who owns the dogs called them home. I never saw him, only heard his voice, so I don't know if he was in the house while his dogs ran loose, or if he was sitting on his front porch watching and waited till I yelled at the dogs to go home.
The last time a dog came after us (2 or 3 weeks ago), Marcus nearly killed me yanking me around so hard trying to protect us that I was bent double with chest pain, struggling to breathe. I had to resort to trying to kick Marcus's legs out from under him to get his attention. Once I had his attention, he alternated between checking on me and looking back to check on the dog, and we somehow made it home with the other dog following most of the way, but with no further incident.
Marcus, the dog who has been attacked without provocation so many times on our walks, was such a brave dog last night. He stood quietly beside me. He never so much as barked when those dogs came at us. I was so proud of him! Terrified but proud.
Carrying pepper spray doesn't work. I learned the hard way it clogs and doesn't work when needed. I read somewhere an air horn will scare off dogs, but someone gave me one and ... no way will I carry it! I am, however, wondering how I can get my hands on the liquid from a jar of some VERY hot chili peppers to put in my water pistol.
Anyone have any suggestions on how to protect myself and my dogs without having to carry around a sledge hammer?
BUDDY: I wasn't. But I could have. And if I did, you would have stolen it!
MARCUS: But you didn't have one and I didn't steal it. So why am I being accused?
SAM: Because you're always the guilty one.
MERCI: And if you didn't steal Buddy's treat this time, you have to be guilty of something else.
SAM: It's the :Law of the Youngest.. The youngest is always guilty and you're both the youngest and the always guilty.
BUDDY: And since you don't remember it, here's a video of what you would have done if you could have done it but you didn't because you got away with it this time!
MARCUS: I have no idea what you are talking about, but if I didn't do it, I apologize anyway.
BUDDY: Well, I hope you've learned your lesson. Don't do it again!
JAN: Hey, which one of you ate half of the sausage in the pan that was intended for my dinner?
RUSTY: It wasn't me, but if you intend to ask for the guilty party to return it, you might want to think twice about it.
MICAH: What are you supposed to be, Rusty?
RUSTY: I'm supposed to be warm but I'm cold. This wet, chilly weather isn't comfortable.
CYNDI: So why are you wearing a lampshade on your head?
RUSTY: I'm not wearing a lamp shade; I'm wearing a drape. Jan left it on the back of the chair and I appropriated it for a blankie, but it isn't very warm.
PERCY: Is winter coming early this year or are we just growing colder ... I mean, older?
BUDDY: Jan didn't use gates when I was a pup, but I can imagine the fun this Corgi pup had breaking loose.
MARCUS: I don't have that problem. When I was very small, I climbed the gate Jan used to try to keep me out of a room. And before long, I could jump over it.
SAM: But this guy evidently neither climbs nor jumps.
MERCI: But he is one determined - and noisy - little guy. Enjoy our Sunday Smile video.
RUSTY: Why are we posting this picture again? The Team Cat competition is long over.
SAM: We needed a photo in a hurry and this is it. Don't worry. It isn't stalking you.
RUSTY: Oh, okay, if you're sure. So why are we posting today?
SAM: It's been a rough few weeks and Jan has been very discouraged since Thursday. Friday we did the Remembering Bridge Angels post and then we were all down and discouraged thinking of those we're missing (just since we began blogging) as well as the ones our friends have lost.
RUSTY: Yes, the idea was that everyone would share their bridge losses and we'd all feel better. But we cried and couldn't read other posts, so we really let our friends down.
SAM: We decided we don't want to stay depressed and looked for something to make us laugh. We'd like to share ours with you. You might need a laugh too.
RUSTY: This chihuahua should come visit the next time Jan uses a gate to close you dogs in the bedroom.
MARCUS: I don't need his help. I just leap over the gate.
SAM: *mumble, mumble* What a braggart!
RUSTY: I get the sense this chihuahua has been practicing his escape technique. What do you think?
MICAH: We were going to just post a Sunday Smile video today but first we would like to observe a Hatitude of Gratitude moment.
CYNDI: Today we realized we don't say thank you often enough. Thank you for reading our blog and leaving comments or popping off an email, even when life is hectic and we aren't able to get around to leave comments as we would like.
MERCI: Thank you to Ann of Zoolatry for all the graphics and emails to let us know when a furry or human is ill or has gone to the bridge. That is an investment of time and talent.
RUSTY: And thanks to those who administrate the Blogville Power of the Paw blog and the memorial blog Our Rainbow Friends that is published on the 15th of each month. We have shed a lot of tears at both sites.
MARCUS: We try to visit Our Rainbow Friends each month to leave a comment for all those that passed away the previous month, even if we didn't know them. A couple of days ago we went by because we couldn't remember visiting in July.
BUDDY: And we hadn't. Ann was busy and forgot to send out a notice. But, even without a reminder, the Tabbies O Trout Towne had visited on the 15th of July and left condolences on each post. We wanted to say a special thank you to the Tabbies and their mom for being committed to be there for others. We might have a bit of a problem understanding their accent at times, but we always understand their warm heart.
PERCY: And in honor of this observance, Sam has removed his hat. Well, he didn't actually remove it. I accidentally knocked it off his head, but it's the same end result.
SAM: Yes, I was just sitting here wondering what Micah meant about Hatitude and suddenly I realized I was completely bald.
PERCY: Sam, you are not bald. You are hatless. They are not the same thing.
SAM: Well, they feel like the same thing. The air conditioning might not cool the house sufficiently but it sure does make my bald head cold.
MICAH: Here is our Sunday Smile video. This husky pup has a lot to say. I think he's telling a joke since the lady is laughing so hard.
MERCI: It's my turn to post my picture in case you've forgotten what I look like. You do remember all of us, don't you?
MICAH: Personally, I think we're pretty hard to forget, but we're not around as much as we used to be due to circumstances of life named Jan.
RUSTY: We're catching a moment online while she has her feet in a pan of Epsom Salts trying to get the swelling in her bad ankle down.
MARCUS: She has a bad ankle? Can she trade it in for a good one? Or at least one the same size as the other?
SAM: You have nothing to worry about, Marcus. She knows you have to be exercised daily and even of she has to waddle down the road listing to the right, she hasn't failed you yet.
CYNDI: After a month in email hell, Jan has finally figured out the problem and spent part of yesterday and most of today setting up new Thunderbird accounts.
PERCY: We can finally receive emails on the computer. But Jan still has a lot of folders and files to "move" before things are somewhat back to "normal".
BUDDY: This is a video of a Marcus act-alike. Not look-alike, act-alike. This is how Marcus would react in a race. We have to admit the owner lost the competition, but, really, did the dog lose too? We think not!
MARCUS: This is so totally unfair. I should have been there. Why wasn't I invited?
RUSTY: Invited where? Were you going on a trip?
MERCI: No, he's upset he wasn't with us Saturday evening when Buddy, Sam and I walked Jan.
MICAH: He's always upset about not being invited along. What was so special about Saturday?
SAM: Jan decided to leave the sidewalk to walk along the mill fence. We reached the end just as a fox came trotting through an open gate. It must have been on its way to the woods across the street.
CYNDI: A real fox? So that's what Jan was talking about when she came home saying she'd seen a beautiful animal. What happened? Did it chase you? Were you scared?
BUDDY: It was only about 4 yards away from us. We all stopped dead and stared at each other until Sam got nervous and started making strange noises. Then the fox turned and trotted back toward the mill. First a coyote, now a fox. We hope there is not a bear living in the woods.
PERCY: We have Pixel, a ferocious 10-week old pup impersonating a wild animal, for today's Sunday Smile. Watch how he ruthlessly chases off the family cat from his bed.
RUSTY: Have you been drinking? I didn't see anything ferocious about that pup.
PERCY: I hope you're happy. You just ruined my introduction. Why don't we let our friends watch the video and decide for themselves!
MARCUS: Hey, remember this photo of me with Sam in the background? Cyndi thinks I should have loaned these shades to Jan until her eyes heal. I wish I had thought of that last month.
CYNDI: On second thought, I don't think dark glasses would have helped since it's winter here. Jan wouldn't have been able to see where she was going and .... well, you all know what happened when she could see but didn't.
MERCI: She is looking less like a raccoon these days but still has two bumps/bruises above one eye and a little raccoon left. She came home from Toastmasters Thursday and told us that a visitor asked about her strange "makeup".
MICAH: Guess he thought she was in character for a speech, but quickly caught himself and asked, "Or is that an accident?"
CAMERON: We furries are wondering if the folks in Columbus wear weird makeup when giving a speech. If so, Jan would fit right in at the moment.
RUSTY: On the other hand ... er, leg, Jan's knee is not healing well. We mentioned Friday that just as it was less painful, Marcus suddenly changed direction on a walk and rammed Jan in the knee.
SAM: While Jan was fixing our breakfast Friday, Marcus did another sudden U-turn and rammed her in the knee again. After she stopped screaming, she cried. She claims bulldog breeds like me and Marcus have cinder block for a skull but that isn't true. Colliding with her gives us a headache.
PERCY: We have another Jeanne Robertson video clip for a Sunday Smile. We figure if it made Jan laugh, it can make your human laugh.
BUDDY: So enjoy Don't Ask, He'll Tell with the surprise ending. Oh, and Pam, you'll enjoy this. Jeanne is a recipient of Toastmasters International's Golden Gavel award. I was about to say Jan has a number of those from falling on our walks over the years, but I thought it read the Golden Gravel award.
BUDDY: We're just going to do a fast post today. We'll show my handsome profile first, before the scary photo.
CYNDI: Our Tuesday post Trip Fly Crash was a PSA (Public Service Announcement) to slow down when the phone rings. Jan tends to rush because if it's someone from out of our small toll-free area, she can't afford to call them back.
RUSTY: But she won't be rushing any more. People will just have to learn to leave a message and call her back if she doesn't answer.
PERCY: Because this is Jan's face this morning, three days after the failed flight and crash landing on Monday evening.
CAMERON: She is so thankful because she just barely missed hitting her eyeball on the corner of the TV stand and we don't even want to think about that.
MERCI: We dogs needed food so she had to got out in public Tuesday and then to a meeting, but she has been hiding out and resting since.
MICAH: She's a bit excited today. She is finally able to bend her leg enough to get her right sock off and, hopefully, raise the leg enough to get a shower.
MARCUS: We are totally not responsible! We post this as a reminder that rushing can have painful consequences ... um, especially when you're old. So slow down and let us youngsters be the ones to scurry.
SAM: And in the theme of the post, we decided to include one of the cutest cat fights we've seen. We wonder if this cat has figured out he's actually trying to beat up on himself. Enjoy.
MARCUS: We are friends and siblings here, so we support one another. But when a competition begins, we go all out to win. Sam and I are cheering on our canine team.
SAM: Hey, wait, those double crossing felines switched our sign. We are not #Team Cat. We are #Team Dog.
MERCI: There, #Team Dog. This is more like it. Seriously, we are cheering on the felines. And vice versa.
RUSTY: Cyndi was right beside me but she took off when the camera appeared. Guess I have to represent #Team Cat by myself.
PERCY: I suppose you are wondering what the team signs represent. Yesterday we posted Dogs Vs Cats Lucy Bowl about the Lucy Pet Foundation commercial which will air on the Hallmark;s Kitten Bowl this Sunday, February 1 at 12/1c.
CYNDI: The Lucy Pet Foundation is also having a photo contest. Which team are we on? Well, obviously we're on #Team Cat AND on #Team Dog. Who do we want to win? Why all of us, of course!
MICAH: But more than that we would like other furries to benefit. The Lucy Pet Foundation is named for a small dog named Lucy who had five pups shortly after she was rescued. They all got a good home.
CAMERON: Not every pet has that opportunity. Many die in shelters. The LPF has a mission to reduce pet overpopulation.
BUDDY: Yesterday we posted a teaser video for you. Other Super Bowl commercials are being released on video before the Super Bowl, so Lucy Pet Foundation has released a full version of their commercial. We still don't have cable TV, so we hope this doesn't mean you won't invite us to your Kitten Bowl party on Sunday.
This post is brought to you by the rocking furries at the Funny Farm to draw attention to the Lucy Pet Foundation and its efforts on behalf of homeless pets. LPF provided the video. Our blog will be entered into a drawing for a chance to win a $500 donation for a 501c3 rescue of our choice.
